FINE Strategic Plan for Nursing Education in Europe (2025–2035)

Established in 1995, the European Federation of Educators in Nursing Science (FINE) is dedicated to advancing nursing education across Europe. FINE provides a platform for educators to exchange knowledge, share best practices, and collaborate on innovations in nursing science. By gathering data and fostering dialogue, FINE supports evidence-based policy-making within the EU and promotes the integration of nursing education into higher education systems. Committed to excellence, FINE works to enhance the quality and impact of nursing education across Europe.

This strategic plan reinforces FINE’s leadership in nursing education across Europe, ensuring that nursing education remains high-quality, harmonised, and adaptable, thus, future-ready. By enhancing nurse educators training, research capacity, clinical education, and international collaboration, FINE strengthens the nursing workforce’s ability to meet the evolving health needs of populations.

The FINE Strategic Plan for Nursing Education in Europe (2025–2035) includes:

1. Promoting excellence in nursing education

FINE is committed to ensuring high-quality, evidence-based, and future-oriented nursing education by:

• • Strengthening the preparation of nurse educators, supporting their pedagogical development, and promoting ongoing continuing education.
  • Aligning nursing education with the European Qualifications Framework (EQF) and Bologna Process, ensuring a structured continuum of education from bachelor’s to doctoral level.
  • Promoting competency-based and technology-enhanced teaching methods, including simulation, virtual and augmented reality, digital learning platforms, and AI-driven education tools.

2. Strengthening the status of nursing science in European higher education 

To consolidate nursing education as an essential component of European universities, FINE aims to:

• • Harmonise nursing curricula across Europe, ensuring mobility, fair recognition, and consistent quality standards.
  • Promote a standardised framework for specialist and advanced practice nursing roles (EQF level 7 and beyond) to establish clear professional pathways.
  • Advocate for nursing science as a recognised and independent scientific discipline, with a strong foundation in research and evidence-based practice.
  • Support doctoral education (EQF 8) in nursing sciences, strengthening research capacity and academic excellence.
  • Ensure that nursing curricula are responsive to contemporary healthcare challenges, including public health crises, climate-related impacts, and digital transformation

3. Enhancing the value and visibility of nursing in Europe

FINE is dedicated to promoting nursing education and practice as an essential pillar of healthcare by:

• • Advocating for a European consensus on the added value of nurses, ensuring fair recognition and integration into healthcare policies.
  • Promoting the academic, professional, and social recognition of nursing as a cornerstone of the European healthcare system.
  • Empowering nursing educators and strengthening academic career pathways, ensuring that nursing educators have structured opportunities for career progression, leadership roles, and research engagement.
  • Recognising the complementarity between nursing educators and healthcare professionals, fostering stronger collaboration between academia and clinical practice to enhance education quality and workforce preparedness.
  • Supporting public awareness campaigns to enhance the image of nursing and attract new professionals.

4. Representing the interests of nursing students and educators

FINE ensures that the voices of students and educators shape the future of nursing education by:

• • Facilitating dialogue, exchange, and collaboration among students, educators, and institutions across Europe.
  • Working closely with student organisations and professional bodies to promote inclusivity, equity, and responsiveness to students’ aspirations.
  • Advocating for better working conditions, career pathways, and nursing educator’s development, ensuring the sustainability of the nursing education workforce.

5. Influencing nursing education policy and international collaboration

FINE actively engages in policy-making and international cooperation to shape nursing education and workforce development by:

• • Collaborating with EU and international institutions and professional bodies, and other global organisations to influence policies related to nursing competencies, qualifications, and workforce development.
  •  Supporting national initiatives at the request of members to strengthen nursing education in collaboration with health and higher education ministries.
  • Promoting cross-border mobility initiatives for students and educators, including joint degree programmes, teacher mobilities, and transnational research projects.
  • Strengthening partnerships with international nursing organisations to align nursing education with global best practices.
  • Ensuring alignment of European nursing education with global accreditation frameworks, facilitating the recognition of European nursing degrees worldwide.

6. Fostering leadership and research in nursing education

To strengthen nursing education, research, and leadership, FINE commits to:

• • Engaging its council, committees, and members in research, policy discussions, and leadership training.
  • Encouraging participation in transnational projects, developing joint educational and research initiatives to advance nursing education.
  • Ensuring that external funding for FINE projects is acquired through transparent and ethical processes, supporting unbiased research in nursing education.

7. Strengthening clinical training and practice readiness

To enhance the quality of clinical training and prepare nurses for real-world practice, FINE will:

• • Promote greater integration of simulation-based learning embracing innovations in technology to complement clinical placements and address shortages in training sites.
  • Establish European standards for clinical training, ensuring that students receive high-quality, supervised, competency-based education Support flexible learning pathways to enhance access to nursing education for diverse student populations.
  • Encourage interprofessional clinical training, enabling nurses to work alongside other healthcare professionals to improve patient outcomes and collaborative healthcare delivery.

8. Aligning nursing education with global health priorities

FINE ensures that nursing education aligns with broader public health and global healthcare challenges by:

• • Addressing health inequalities and social determinants of health, preparing students to work in diverse and underserved communities.
  • Strengthening the shift towards preventative and integrated care models.
  • Integrating global health perspectives, ensuring nurses are prepared to respond to pandemics, humanitarian crises, and climate-related health impacts.

Conclusion

As the voice of nursing education in Europe, FINE is committed to driving policy change, strengthening nursing science, and ensuring the sustainability of the nursing workforce. Through this strategic plan, FINE reaffirms its leadership in harmonising nursing education, fostering research and innovation, and advocating for the recognition of nursing as a critical scientific discipline and profession.

Looking ahead to 2035 and beyond, FINE will:

• Strengthen its influence on European and international nursing education policy, ensuring that nursing competencies, qualifications, and workforce development align with the evolving needs of healthcare systems.
• Champion the academic and professional development of nursing educators, ensuring that they are empowered to lead and shape the next generation of nurses.
• Foster international collaboration by bringing together nursing educators, policymakers, and researchers across Europe and the wider international context to advance nursing science and improve health outcomes.
• Ensure that nursing education is future-proofed by integrating cutting-edge digital innovations, sustainability principles, and interprofessional education into curricula.
• Advocate for vital contribution of nursing in health care systems and in shaping healthcare policy, ensuring that nurses are positioned as key stakeholders in decision-making at national, European, and global levels.

By continuing to collaborate with European institutions, national governments, and global partners, FINE will play a pivotal role in shaping the future of nursing education, advancing nursing science, and strengthening the nursing profession. This strategic vision will ensure that nursing remains resilient, adaptable, and equipped to meet the healthcare challenges of the future—in Europe and across the world.